The present invention relates to plumbing enclosures which are manufactured in multiple pieces and then assembled at the site of installation (often referred to as “knockdown” type enclosures). More particularly it relates to such enclosures which can be assembled without the use of separate clamps, and largely without the use of tools.
Bathtubs are sometimes designed with integral surrounding shower enclosure walls. Similarly, shower enclosures often have a receptor base/pan formed integrally with surrounding shower enclosure walls. However, the resulting enclosures can be so large that they will not fit through standard doorways or in standard elevators, thereby limiting their use with respect to the replacement market, and in any event making shipment of such products more difficult.
Hence, a variety of enclosures have been developed with the tub or shower pan formed separately from the surrounding enclosure walls. The components are then assembled at the site of installation, often using separate clamps, bolts, screws and/or tools.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,343,201 discloses a knockdown shower enclosure with a horizontal mounting flange and three vertical walls. This design requires screws to interconnect the walls to the flange, which fasteners are time consuming to install. Further, the multitude of such fasteners complicates the installation as instructions are required illustrating the alignment of parts to be joined, what fasteners to use, etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,384,377 discloses a tub-shower enclosure which includes back wall and side wall panels which are molded with integral interlocked portions respectively thereon. The side wall panel can be assembled with the back wall panel to provide firm engagement there between by the interengaging of the interlocked portions with each other.
Specifically, a tongue portion which runs along the vertical edge of each side wall is inserted into a corresponding groove in the edge of the back wall panel. Further, dowel portions on the side walls fit within corresponding pockets in the edge of the back wall panel. This design has the disadvantage that the tongues, grooves, dowels, and pockets need to simultaneously aligned for proper assembly, which can be difficult. Additionally, it can be difficult to disassemble in the event of a repair, as the tongues and grooves have a substantially surface area in mutual contact, which surface area can become melded with calcium deposition from tap water for example, or other sediment, making them difficult to separate.
See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,781,692, 2,282,362, 2,648,409, 4,152,789, 4,471,501, 4,457,031, 4,539,721, 4,901,380, 4,987,619, 5,263,208, 6,647,563, and 6,698,037 for other enclosure structures.
Apart from issues of cost imposed by multi-part and complicated assembly features such as clamps, bolts and the like, a significant issue with such knockdown enclosures relates to insuring the watertight nature of the seams between the parts. In some cases this can require the use of caulk. In other cases this can require very close manufacturing tolerances.
Hence, while a variety of multiple piece type bathing and shower enclosures are known, it is desired to develop improved knockdown plumbing fixtures.